thaw my heart (with coffee)
by nonplatonic
Summary: Obligatory college/coffee!au verse, where Kristoff is a coffee loving barista, and Elsa a coffee enthusiast that takes her sister Anna to her favorite coffee shop. Kristoff kind of really likes the sweet strawberry blonde, even if Anna is really more of a tea person.


Anna couldn't remember the last time she'd gone out with her sister. They'd both been so busy lately, because college was no cakewalk. Especially if you were majoring in education, as Anna was, specifically catering to elementary schoolers. Not only was she working diligently in her classes to hopefully earn her teaching degree one day, but she was also working part time at the local elementary school as a teacher's aid, to earn much-needed money. Anna was nineteen now, in her first year of college schooling, and she was having a blast majoring in elementary education, with a minor in special education. There was an adorable young boy at the local elementary school, Olaf, who she was having so much fun working with in her special education class.

Now though, she had a free day for herself and Elsa, having caught up with grading and classwork yesterday. Anna had been planning for her and Elsa to get together for a long time, so she and her sister had looked at their busy schedules, finally able to pinpoint a date they believed they'd be ready to have time together on if they worked hard enough. Anna knew Elsa was a perfectionist, being an architecture and planning major, and she was working intensely the past two weeks to be sure she'd have time to spend with her sister. She told Anna about how her class was working on designs and models for a castle, and since Elsa was in her third-year, the work was extremely intense and energy draining. Not to mention that her minor in environmental sciences sucked away any energy that was left after working on her models. Anna sympathized with her elder sister, eager to lap up any information about her sister's life, seeing as how they were finally reconnecting after years of Elsa isolating herself from family after she'd left home.

When Elsa had left for college at eighteen, three years ago, Anna's parents had understood and gave her space, encouraging her to let go of the stresses of her home life and enjoy college on her own. Anna felt it was too much space, for she only got the rare email from Elsa during those two and a half years. When she turned eighteen, she left her parents back at their home in Europe, traveling to the states to join the college her sister was in. That was half a year ago, and in six short months Anna was helping to mend the relationship between her and Elsa, having them spend free time together, even do their work together too. She'd had Elsa visit and meet Olaf at the elementary school, and the two of them bonded well enough that Elsa was soon considered a good friend of the boy and his parents. Elsa had invited her to different galleries where her architecture class's models were displayed, allowing Anna to admire Elsa's fondness for intricately detailed and spiderwebbed designs that shimmered in the lights like ice in the sun. Anna had even gone on the couple of environmental hikes that Elsa's class went on with NRCS workers.

Anna felt that their sisterly bond was truly mended when Elsa had helped her through the biggest break-up of her life. She'd met a man working to become a pediatrician, Hans, in her college's selected area for students studying to work with children. He was the most gorgeous man she'd ever met, originally from Denmark, and with the most gorgeous mint green eyes and auburn hair. Hans was also the most romantic guy she'd ever gone out with, and the first day they met he asked her be his girlfriend, even told her he was going to propose to her one day. It should've been a warning sign, one that Elsa caught and pointed out to her, but Anna felt so infatuated that she ignored her sister's advice to stay away from Hans. A week went by in her and Hans's relationship, and she'd caught him swapping spit with another girl in his pediatrics class, a gorgeous honey-blonde with nearly violet eyes named Aurora. Her infatuation ran deep, and she was nearly going to forgive Hans and continue their relationship, but the day after his escapade with Aurora (who apologized to Anna and broke off her relationship with Hans) she caught him trying to make a pass at Elsa when she was on her way to pick up Anna for lunch. She'd dumped his ass then and there, and she and Elsa had had the biggest heart to heart since when they were kids, Elsa admitting to having been in a similar relationship (that wasn't quite so rushed as Hans and Anna's, but just as heartbreaking) with a flaxen haired woman named Cinderella, who cheated on her two months into their relationship. The two sisters spent that evening in Anna's modest apartment, reminiscing, sharing years worth of stories and swallowing down pints of all ice cream flavors imaginable.

So, Anna felt it was safe to say that she and Elsa had fixed their relationship as best as possible considering that two and a half year gap. She and her sister tried their hardest everyday to regain and maintain normalcy, and they planned get-togethers as often as their crammed schedules would allow.

This time, the two sister's were headed to have coffee together at a fantastic new cafe that Elsa adored. Elsa was a bit of what one would call a "coffee enthusiast" and sometimes she even created her own blends. Anna had seen Elsa get so specific with her coffee orders the times they'd gone out together, and her elder sister had flustered her share of naïve baristas. Anna didn't really know where the coffee obsession came from, but she guessed it would have to do with staying up on long nights studying for exams, and the fact that her sister was always working nonstop. It wasn't the best of obsessions, obviously not the healthiest, and Anna didn't really understand the hype with coffee. She was more of a tea person.

"Anna, trust me, you're going to love it! They have tea as well, and though I haven't had their blends I'm sure there'll be something to your liking. Plus, with the winter weather coming up they have their special blends which are _fantastic_." Elsa smiled warmly at her younger sister. The two sisters were bundled well enough, Elsa with a pair of fluffy earmuffs and Anna with a knit hat from their mother.

Stepping over the colorful leaves on the pavement, Anna walked as gently as she could compared to her sister's naturally graceful stride. Her bangs swung in her line of sight every now and then, not long enough to be tamed within her twin braids. She brushed them back with her mitten clad hands, her eyes bright and excited. She knew Elsa would be entertaining when ordering her coffee, and she couldn't wait to see the flustered barista.

* * *

"That'll be $3.50, kid." Kristoff was having the "time of his life" on this shift. There was a cluster of teenaged girls cackling loudly in the left corner of the shop, and a trio of boys not-so-subtly checking out said girls from the right side of the room. Scattered around at different tables in the middle of the cafe were some regulars who either sat with headphones and laptops, or were reading quietly and shooting glares at anyone speaking above fifteen decibels. There was a rowdy family sat at the table next to the trio of boys, and of course the customer he was dealing with now, a redhead with the craziest hair he'd ever seen, who was with her demure, brunette mother.

The two left the shop with their coffee, the mother whispering harshly to her daughter while shooting looks back at him, until they were finally gone. Kristoff had to laugh at that. He knew he was being an ass, but surely the silly redhead knew that ordering a Sweet Maria would mean it'd have some fruits involved. If the girl didn't like peach, the Sweet Maria was not meant for her, but she insisted on having it anyway? People were absurd.

"As usual, you work so well with people, Kristoff." Tiana walked up to the counter, multiple boxes of teabags in her arms to restock at the front. Kristoff snorted softly, rolling up his sleeves to his elbows and grabbing a washcloth to wipe down the sticky counter.

"Hey, you know coffee is my life. I can't help it if I get snarky with someone who thinks they know coffee and they actually don't. Plus, their expressions are priceless." He grinned at his co-worker toothily, and Tiana rolled her eyes at him, humming softly as she restocked.

Tiana stole a glance at the clock, her russet brown eyes trying to mask her impatience. Kristoff knew she was excited to get off shift and see her boyfriend Naveen. She'd been humming to herself all day, a sure sign she was pleased and excited. The two of them had been working together at this damned coffee shop for two years, and that's how he knew that if he didn't just let her go early she'd probably spend the last twenty minutes of her shift glancing at the clock and cleaning _everything_. Which, wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing for _him_ but he knew his friend would appreciate it so much, and he wasn't a _total_ asshole.

"Tia, just go. I'll lock up the place tonight, boss told me she's opening tomorrow early with Shang, so she said we don't need to get back tomorrow until after our classes." Kristoff laughed at Tiana's conflicted expression, her eyes darting from him, to the clock, and to the door. It was 4:30 p.m., and her date with Naveen was at 5:20. If she left now she'd have enough time to walk to her place (two blocks away) and change out of her work uniform, unlike her last outing with Naveen. She sighed, smiling at her big and blonde friend, tugging him into a hug, her head barely reaching above his broad shoulders. Stepping away, she stretched to ruffle his unruly hair, laughing at his groan of annoyance.

"Thanks, sugar." Tiana's Cajun accent drawled out, as she untied her apron, hanging it on it's respective hook and throwing her visor on the hook above. Quickly redoing her hair from a tight bun to a casual ponytail, she stepped out from behind the counter, grabbing her coat from the rack meant for everyone, including customers, and made for the door. She yelled back to Kristoff, "I'll see ya tomorrow!"

"Tell Naveen I said 'hey!'" Tiana nodded, heading out, and Kristoff went back to wiping down the counter and the brewers. He was drifting off, his mind blank, when he heard the small chime of the door opening, indicating a customer. He looked up, to see a girl he vaguely recognized, and a gorgeous strawberry blonde he'd never seen before. Her platinum-blonde friend slipped off her jacket, revealing the steel blue, long-sleeved and furry dress she wore with her white stockings and gunmetal colored snow boots. Yet he felt his face heating up as he watched the strawberry blonde slide off her coat. She was dressed in a forest green, oversized Christmas sweater with a snowman on it, and pastel green tights with clunky black boots. He saw the two women coming to the counter, chatting with each other happily, and got back to idly wiping.

* * *

"And my professor decided that because all of my designs usually incorporate complicated, almost snowflake-like designs, that he wanted me to make my final model out of ice. Ice, Anna! I am not a sculptor, that's not my thing! Sure, I love designing and creating, and natural resource conservation class, which is really about taking care of the earth and all things on it, but just because I love that doesn't mean I know how to make my architectural designs out of earthly materials like ice."

"Maybe you should talk to your professor about it? I mean, I'm sure he'll understand, and it's not like he can force you to sculpt your model, since you have no background in it and it isn't required." Anna gave her sister an encouraged smile, while Elsa laughed and then relaxed.

"Of course... I just, don't want to disappoint I guess. But I'll be sure to schedule a meeting, that's for sure." Elsa tucked a loose strand of platinum hair behind her ear, turning to the barista who was watching her and Anna converse, subtly. He had an amused smirk on his face, while he slowly wiped at the counter in front of them. Catching her eye, he threw the washcloth over his shoulder, and quirked an eyebrow at her. "...Let's just order our drinks, Anna."

"Ooh! Right. Um, you go first, since you've actually been here before." Anna's eyes scanned the extensive chalkboard that hung on the wall in front of her, behind the counter. Who knew there'd be so many blends of tea at one cafe? She normally had green tea, or chamomile with lemon. But she was here hanging out with her sister, maybe she'd be adventurous and try something she'd never had before. Her eyes stuck on the name "Strawberry Blonde". It apparently consisted of peach white tea, peach oolong, and a bit of ginger. It sounded wonderful to Anna, and she decided to have it, along with a chocolate chip and walnut cookie.

"Well, I know I want to have some Mokha-Java, and since I'm feeling something berry-like I'll have some Yemen mixed with Sulawesi Toraja coffee, fifty percent of each for an even blend I believe." Elsa smirked at their barista, his name-tag reading "Kristoff" which she felt was a vaguely familiar name...

Anna giggled behind her hand, turning to look at their barista. She couldn't wait to see his confused face, or see him ask her to explain her order in more detail. But when she turned to look at ("Kristoff" said his name-tag, and really, what a silly name) he looked totally calm, if not kind of... excited? She watched his whiskey colored eyes light up at her sister's order, his handsome face twist into an excited grin, strong arms crossing over his chest, and unruly hair the color of butternut swept in front of his face. Anna's eyes fixed on his fingers, as the digits swept his fringe out of from in front of his eyes. She felt her cheeks warm up a bit, a small fluttering in her stomach.

"Actually, I don't think you'll wanna go fifty-fifty on a drink like that. Too much of the Yemen coffee and you'll get this overwhelming amount of sweetness, just gross amounts of it. You wanna go twenty-five on the Yemen. With seventy-five on the Sulawesi you'll get a deeper, more syrupy and rich flavor. The Yemen will provide the delicious swirl of berry on top of the rich tones of taste you'll have from the Sulawesi. Unless you're looking to have a cup of coffee completely devoid of it's possible potential as an amazing and relaxing drink, then you should probably go twenty-five percent on the Yemen with seventy-five percent on the Sulawesi Toraja, as I've recommended." Anna was watching the handsome barista smirk, which flustered her even more, when her sister laughed nervously.

"You, uh, really know your coffee, for a mere barista."

"Coffee is my life," Kristoff replied nonchalantly. "So, are you going to go with the brew I recommended or are you sticking with your _fifty-fifty_?"

"I'll go with your recommendation. I've never ordered it that way before. I usually go with fifty-fifty on that blend, and no barista has ever known enough about the brew to correct me on the proportions of the mix or recommend anything." Elsa was smiling at Kristoff, who looked pleased, before his eyes widened in something akin to recognition.

"Wait, do you go to the college that's like, a fifteen minute walk away from here?" Kristoff knew he recognized the platinum blonde. He'd seen her around his college a few times, in the science department, usually walking around with a tall and elegant brunette whose name he believed was Pocahontas.

"Yeah! Wait, are you in the environmental sciences department? I knew I'd heard that name, 'Kristoff,' somewhere! You're always with that troublemaking guy, Naveen, I think?" Anna watched as Kristoff confirmed Elsa's suspicions, and the two of them laugh, and he held out his hand for a handshake over the counter. He formally introduced himself to her, snorting when Elsa curtsied.

"...And this is my younger sister, Anna. She's never in the science department, far too bored by the concept. She's studying to become an elementary school teacher, and with a minor in education for individuals with impairments or disabilities." Elsa smiled at her sister, proud, and Anna squirmed in embarrassment as Kristoff's warm gaze landed on her.

"Nice to meet you, Anna." Kristoff held his hand out for her to shake, and Anna shivered at his honey-sweet voice saying her name. She quickly wiped her hand on her sweater, praying it wasn't as sweaty as she believed it to be, and shook the man's hand with three strong pumps, a proper handshake as she'd been taught. He lifted his eyebrows at her, amused, and let go of her hand.

"So, I know I've already saved Elsa's order," Elsa rolled her eyes at this. "What would you like, Anna?" Anna suddenly felt skittish. She felt like those dumb (as in: gorgeous) brown eyes of his were delighted in seeing her nervousness, and her tongue felt like cotton in her mouth. She laughed nervously, swallowing quickly.

"I'll, um, have the 'Strawberry Blonde', um, please?" Kristoff smiled at her, and she could've reached over and pinched his cheek so hard that he'd stop looking so adorable already. He confirmed with Elsa that their order was "to stay," and Anna watched as he turned to the machines, grabbing milk and different roasts of coffee, placing them next to the machine. His hands were working methodically, pressing buttons and watching the machine carefully as it brewed Elsa's coffee. Pouring the coffee into a gorgeous ceramic cup, embellished with a dragon emblem, mixing it softly with a spoon, and placing it on a small saucer, handing it to Elsa.

"Here, Anna, my wallet. This is my treat. I'm gonna sit down though, before anymore tables can be filled." Anna watched helplessly as her sister sat down, and down widened her eyes in shock when her sister smirked slyly back at her, discreetly pointing at Kristoff and mouthing, "Get him, kid." Anna couldn't believe her sister.

"So, did you want anything elsa with your tea?" Kristoff looked up at her as he opened a homemade packet of tea leaves, labeled 'Strawberry Blonde'.

"Um, yeah actually. A chocolate chip and walnut cookie, preferably." She swiped at her bangs nervously, turquoise eyes latching on to Kristoff's whiskey colored ones. She grinned largely when that flustered the man, laughing when he cursed, as he nearly dropped the bag of tea leaves.

* * *

"N-no problem." Kristoff mentally face-palmed at his behavior. He couldn't even keep his composure in front of a beautiful woman. He was hopeless. Glancing up quickly, he caught a glimpse of Anna's huge grin, entranced by the scattering of freckles on the bridge of her nose. Anna was unfairly gorgeous, and her huge grin had his face heating, and turning his eyes back to his work. He scattered the tea leaves into the brewer, using lucid water, and not boiling water, which would make the light, white tea too bitter for the peachy and sweet flavor of the 'Strawberry Blonde'. He squirmed, standing and watching the tea brew. It would take a few minutes to brew properly. He placed the teacup beneath the tea maker's spout, turning to Anna with renewed confidence.

"So, education? Of kids too! Sounds like a lot of hard work, why'd you choose it?" Kristoff leaned his elbows on the counter nonchalantly, checking to be sure no customers were in line behind Anna, and when he confirmed he wouldn't be neglecting anyone, turned his eyes back to Anna, whose eyes were bright with excitement.

"Well, I just love kids! Don't you? They're just so sweet, elementary schoolers mostly, and it's always fun to watch someone so young absorbing brand new information, soaking it all in like a little sponge. They're always so eager to learn, they love it! And how could you not love watching such a young human being learn something you've known for so long, sharing your knowledge of the world with them, seeing how motivated and happy they are to work and listen, all at once. I have a student I work with at the local public school, Olaf, and he's the sweetest boy I've ever met. He has a lower spectrum of ADHD, but you should see his face when we're working on our lessons. Even though I have to constantly remind him of proper behavior, or have to try to get him to stop squirming or prevent him from going off on a tangent, teaching him feels so rewarding. The fact that I'm helping to teach such a young mind, that I'll be such a strong influence on his future, is such a strong feeling of accomplishment and fear at the same time. Because you have to think, what if you mess up? What if because of something I teach him, Olaf accidentally makes a choice that negatively affects him in life? But, I know I can't let thoughts like that get to me, or I'd be drowning in negativity all the time!"

Anna sighed softly, thinking about sweet little Olaf, with his little arms waving around, his two front buck teeth chomping on the carrots his mother packed for him. She nearly lost herself in her thoughts, before hearing the soft shrill of the tea maker. She glanced up to see Kristoff shake himself off, striding over to the machine. Opening a few latches, dumping the tea leaves from the machine and into a bin, and placing her cup of tea onto a small saucer. He placed it on the counter before going over to the display case and grabbing her cookie with a napkin. He placed that on the counter as well, smiling shyly at Anna, calculating her total for the order.

"It'll be $7.00 in total, Anna." Kristoff accepted her ten-dollar bill, his hand brushing against Anna's, secretly pleased when he saw her small shiver and how her mouth twitched upward slightly.

He glanced at the napkin, where he'd, on the bottom of it, quickly written his number and a small message. Handing Anna her change, he watched the woman walk over to where Elsa sat. He glanced at Elsa, caught her smirking and silently mocking him, before being grateful as a couple walked in hand-in-hand. He handled their order as he did with other customers who had not a single clue about the complexities of coffee as an art. The man and women, both of Arabian descent, ordered coffees with names they found intriguing, asking him for recommendations that he happily complied in giving.

* * *

"Before we leave, you should definitely check out that napkin you have there." Elsa inwardly laughed as Anna nearly experienced whiplash as she turned from not-so-discreetly checking out Kristoff as he worked calmly in his natural habitat.

Elsa, usually over-protective of her younger sister, wanted to see what could spark between Kristoff and her baby sister. Her friend from her architectural class, Alice, was also in a sculpting class with Kristoff. She hadn't made the connection until now, because Alice always referred to him as "the super hunky, blonde mountain man." Alice had mentioned him only once or twice, but she had said his ice sculptures were the best in her class, far more advanced than anyone else's, and yet she said he was always helping the teacher or cracking jokes with his friend Milo. Alice had passingly mentioned how he was extremely friendly with his friends, but a bit cold to those he didn't know, to the point of being considered a loner. Elsa felt that a relationship between him and her sister would go a long way for her sister, for she felt they could balance each other well, Anna's sometimes overbearing bubbliness contrasting with Kristoff's mellow attitude.

"Why, what's on the... napkin." Anna's sentence trailed off as her cheeks flamed at the numbers scribbled across the back of her napkin.

_xxx-xxx-xxxx your love for kids is super cute, I'd love to go out sometime? :o)_

Anna inhaled sharply, glancing up to find Kristoff looking hopefully at her. Anna smiled hugely, nodding at him, and felt her heart flutter as he grinned right back, ruffling his hair nervously. Anna couldn't help it, he looked so sweet and happy.

She winked.

* * *

**Author's note:**  
Also available on my tumblr/ao3, for which the links are on my profile. I'm definitely going to... somehow continue this. Ideas/comments/feedback are all appreciated and feed my motivation.


End file.
